


Speed Dating

by peterickswhore



Category: Fall Out Boy
Genre: Awkward Conversations, Awkward Flirting, Awkward Romance, Awkwardness, Blind Date, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, First Dates, Flirting, Getting Together, Getting to Know Each Other, Hurt/Comfort, Insults, M/M, Self Confidence Issues, Self-Esteem Issues, Speed Dating
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-09
Updated: 2019-10-09
Packaged: 2020-11-28 06:27:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,184
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20961980
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/peterickswhore/pseuds/peterickswhore
Summary: Patrick greatly regrets letting Andy and Joe sign him up for speed dating but maybe he'll find someone to make it worth the time





	Speed Dating

**Patrick's POV**

I honestly don't know why I let Andy and Joe talk me into this speed dating bullshit but I hate myself for it. I've been single for almost 2 years now and I really don't like it but it's way easier than dating.

Joe and Andy have heard so many rants from me about how I hate being single so I guess they thought this would be good. If I was anyone else it probably would be but I'm so awkward and shy that I just can't do this. I got dumped and cheated on multiple times in a row so now putting myself out there is just too hard. I can't even make new friends so finding someone who wants to date me seems almost impossible.

Now instead of being home watching game of thrones I'm sitting at a table waiting for my first date. There's other tables of guys all around me but I feel totally isolated and unwelcome here. Half of me wants to just get up and run out before I embarrass myself but I try to hold myself back. At least it's only a couple of minutes with each guy so if it sucks it'll be over quickly.

Eventually a bell rings and other guys fill the room, all sitting down at tables. When a guy sits in front of me I give him a little smile and try to figure this out. The guy says his names Dallon and he ends up being pretty nice and we get along ok so it's not as painful as I expected. When the bell rings for him to move he pats my wrist and gives me a smile before moving to the next table. I watch him go then quickly tick his name on my sheet full of guys to say I want to see him again.

Now I'm feeling a little more confident so I try extra hard with the next guy. That guy tells me his names Ben but he spends most of the time on his phone which breaks my confidence a little. After all my conversation attempts fail we sit in silence until the bell goes and he finally leaves. I don't know what his problem was but I definitely don't want to see him again.

For the next few guys it's pretty awkward but there's a decent one every once in a while. Feeling a little demoralised I tick every decent guy, presuming it might just be because it's an awkward situation.

When a new guy sits down at my table I check him out appreciatively. He's got loads of tattoos which is definitely something I like and this seems like it could be a promising one. Before I can even say hi though the guy gives me a dirty look and rolls his eyes "I see they're letting just anyone in here now"

I can't even form a single thought as I stare at him stupidly, trying to process what he said. After a couple of seconds of awkward silence I finally manage to close my mouth and stammer out "W-what?"

"I said I see they're letting just anyone in here now, are you stupid or something?"

"No I just don't know what you're implying"

"I'm implying that obviously this whole thing has gone downhill if they're letting people like you in here now"

Luckily the bell goes then so the guy walks off with a huff and leaves me panicking alone. Everyone up until now has been so nice and I was having a decent time but now my self esteem is ruined. I know I'm not the most attractive person and now I'm over 30 so I'm not a lot of guys type but that was just cruel. I didn't think I was terrible enough for all that but I guess maybe all the other guys were just too nice to tell the truth.

The rest of the speed dating is super painful. My self esteems shit and I can't manage to hold a conversion so every guy leaves annoyed at me. Even when they're perfectly nice and try hard with it I still feel like they're judging me and hating me inside.

After another painful experience once the guy leaves I put my head down on my arms to breathe for a minute. I haven't had a panic attack in months and I really don't want to have one here. If the guys didn't all think I was gross and undateable before they definitely would if that happened.

I'm too busy trying not to freak out that when a hand strokes my hair gently I fling my head up in fright. I look at the guy in front of me in confusion and feel completely lost.

When he sees how freaked out I am he quickly takes his hand back and gives me a smile "I'm Pete"

"I'm Patrick"

"Nice to meet you cutie, how've you been so far?"

"It's been kinda shit honestly"

Pete gives a little hum of sympathy but I'm too busy staring at his tattoos. The asshole from before had tattoos and he was terrible but the fact this guy has them too gives me hope. He's gorgeous and seems pretty nice and isn't weirded out by me so maybe this could be ok.

I'm busy staring at him so when Pete puts a hand on mine I jump again but instinctively grab onto his hand "You good sweetheart? What's been going on?"

"It's just been a long day and I'm not good at this kind of stuff"

"Me neither, my friend Brendon talked me into it"

"My friends did the same, I've been single for a while and they think it's bad for me"

"Me too, I've been so focused on writing a novel that I've basically ignored any human interaction"

"I do the same with my music"

Pete seems really amazing so when the bell goes my face drops because I really want to talk to him more. When he sees how disappointed I am he squeezes my hand and gives me another perfect toothy smile "This is the last date of the day, we can talk a little more before handing in our cards"

"Really?"

"Yeah, I want more time with you"

Now that I know it's the end I'm relieved but also terrified. We have an hour break while all the cards are checked then we get a list of all the guys who wanted to see us again. As terrible as some of these dates were I'd feel even more terrible if no one ticked my name. I know I wasn't the best date but it would totally crush me if no one was interested at all.

Again Pete watches me in my panic for a few seconds then leans over to take my other hand. He places a gentle kiss on the top of one of them then raises an eyebrow "What's going through that pretty head?"

"Nothing"

"Come on, tell me, if you don't tick my name we'll never even see each other again so what've you got to loose?"

"My dignity, not that there's much of that left"

"Come on, it'll make you feel better I promise"

"I was just thinking about how shit it'd be if no one ticked my name"

After I blurt that out I look down at our linked hands to hide my awkwardness, hoping Pete doesn't think I'm weird. There's no way someone like him wouldn't get loads of people wanting dates so he wouldn't understand.

"I'm sure everyone will want another date with you silly"

"No way, everyone hated me"

"That's impossible"

"It's really not"

"It really is but I'll tell you what. I'm definitely going to ask for another date with you so even if everyone else doesn't want one I do"

"Really?"

"Yeah look"

Pete takes out his card and after checking to make sure I'm watching checks the box next to my name. I blush at how many other names he's ticked but I blush even more at the fact I'm one of them. We might end up only having an awkward first date then agreeing to never speak again but I'm ok with that. It's more than I've had in years so even if it goes terribly wrong at least it'll get Andy and Joe off my back.

I'm grinning like an idiot now so Pete smirks as he helps me to my feet and we walk together to the front of the room. We hand in our cards then Pete runs his thumb over my knuckles "We've got a break now so how about I meet you back here when we get our cards back?"

"I'd like that"

"Me too, I'm really hoping you ticked my name too so maybe after this is all done we can go on that date"

"Like right now?"

"Yeah like right now, why wait?"

"Because all the happiness will be in one day then tomorrow I'll be sad and lonely again"

"I'll take you out tomorrow as well then, I highly doubt I'll be satisfied with one one date"

Pete kisses my hand again then quickly leans in to kiss my cheek before jogging off. I see him go over to the Dallon guy I spoke to first and jump onto his back so I presume they must be friends. I don't really have anything to do now because I didn't come with anyone so I just follow the crowd out.

According to my phone there's a good coffee shop a coulee of blocks away so I walk there. I spend the next hour drinking overpriced, but admittedly delicious, coffee before heading back to the hall. Maybe after this I can find Pete and take him here for our date. I think that'd be really fun and now I'm actually excited to go back. There's still the nerves about who's picked me but at least I know one guy wants me, that's more than enough.

Once everyone's back inside the organisers of the event start reading out names and giving them the cards. When my names finally called I stumble over and take my card, carefully not looking at it. I wait until I'm outside and slowly flip the card over to see my results. I'm expecting to see only Pete's name so when I see 7 of them I'm shocked. There's Pete and Dallon like I expected as well as a few others I ticked and a couple I didn't.

I'm standing smiling like an idiot and when Pete comes over and puts an arm around my shoulders I feel even better. He looks at my card then squeezes me against his side "See I told you everyone would love you" "I guess I should listen to you more"

"You really should listen to me, I'm always right"

"How'd you do? Got hundreds of dates?"

"I wish"

Pete pulls his card out of his pocket and shows it to me so I can see that more than half the guys he talked to ticked him. I'm not at all surprised but it's a little intimidating so know he'll be going on so many dates.

Once I've seen it Pete tucks it away again then starts pulling me towards Dallon and another guy "Come on, we're gonna go get something to eat"

"Who's that guy?"

"Someone me and Dallon both ticked and who ticked us, he seems cool so it'll be like a double date"

"A double date where we swap partners?"

"Yeah it'll be kinda cool, I really like you though so I might not end up swapping"

Pete's so flirty and easy to be around so I happily chat to him as much as I can. The other guy Ryan seems pretty cool and I still really like Dallon but Pete's definitely the one I'd date. I'd happily be friends with Dallon and Ryan but compared to Pete dating them just couldn't live up.

We all chat as we wander down the street until we find a little chinese restaurant. Inside me and Pete cuddle up on one side of the booth and Ryan and Brendon on the other. Like me and Pete they seem way more interested in each other than in us which I'm super glad about. This is turning out to be like a proper double date not some weird swapping thing.

Me and Pete spend the next 2 hours talking, occasionally talking to Dallon and Ryan but mostly just each other. By the end of it I'm totally obsessed with Pete and I know all this was definitely worth it. I know he's probably going to go on a lot more dates with a lot more guys but this is all I need. Hopefully after all those dates he'll realise he likes me best and we can go on a bunch more. Even if we don't though I'm certain we'll be great friends so I'm just really glad I've got him in my life now.


End file.
